ROCHESTER — If the community here wants a $205 million local sales tax extension, then city leaders need to better define how part of that money would be spent on a new recreation center.
That was the message several Rochester City Council members and Mayor Kim Norton gave Monday while the council reviewed legislative priorities for 2023.
Rochester officials are planning to renew their push at the Minnesota Legislature to continue a 0.5% sales tax the city has had in place since 1983. The city needs legislative approval to raise the $205 million over 16 ½ years to improve streets, water quality and housing stock, and build a $65 million recreation center.
Yet, some council members and Norton say there's still too much confusion surrounding a proposed recreation center. The city announced initial plans for the complex earlier this year, but work hasn't progressed beyond initial ideas and concepts.
The council in April voted down a $60,000 proposal to hire LSE Architects out of Minneapolis to help shape recreation center goals, citing concerns the city could waste money on a project that hadn't yet received legislative approval.
Norton said she was concerned over whether city residents would support the project even as community groups get excited over its possibilities. She said she's heard from several soccer groups who think the new recreation center would serve their need.
"There's a lot of confusion about which organizations are going to get access," she said. "I don't want us to build up a false hope without defining who's going to have access to this and have people disappointed after the fact."
While Norton said she had qualms over the project's perception — the largest amount of sales tax extension funding would go toward the recreation center over streets, housing and water infrastructure — Council Member Nick Campion pointed out the project addresses space issues for numerous community sports.
